While the 2025 NFL Draft for the Houston Texans centered around giving quarterback C.J. Stroud a boost in talent for both his offensive line upfront and weapons, the team also decided to add another member to the signal caller room behind their starter with the selection of Florida's Graham Mertz at 197th overall.
Mertz, the 24-year-old, six-year college quarterback who spent time with both Florida and Wisconsin, found his way to Houston in the sixth round of this year's draft, becoming the ninth signal caller taken off the board.
While the Texans do already have a position group held down by Stroud, Davis Mills, and Kedon Slovis, the Houston brass clearly saw a few traits that they liked from Mertz late in day three, and decided to throw a dart on him to become their fourth quarterback on the roster for the time being.
In the eyes of Texans general manager Nick Caserio, there was some interesting appeal to be had in Mertz on day three, thanks to his college experience and strong traits shown during his visit to Houston, which led to the Florida product being the pick at 197.
"Got a lot of playing experience, had some success at Wisconsin, then kind of went through the coaching transition there a little bit, and he felt like the best opportunity for him was at Florida," Caserio said of Mertz. "Then he played there his first year, he got hurt a little bit, obviously, this year. But, good demeanor, good presence– has good leadership, good size. Throws a pretty good ball. So, the type of player that we felt had some traits and characteristics at that position that we wanted to work with."
"We had him here in the building, and he was as advertised. So, we'll see how it goes when he gets here."
Mertz had a limited showing across last season due to an ACL tear that kept him to only five games, but when healthy, the Florida quarterback was impressive.
In 2023, he posted a 72.3% completion rate on just under 3,000 yards passing, with 20 touchdowns and only three interceptions through 12 games after transferring from Wisconsin after four seasons.
As an accurate, experienced pocket presence, there's upside for Mertz to be a capable backup at the next level, and that's seemingly what the Texans' front office saw.
Heading into next season, the Florida quarterback will have a good shot to compete for a spot on the 53-man roster as a backup next to Mills and Slovis, and if his health is 100%, he'll have a good chance to make it happen with a nice camp and preseason effort.
He's not as flashy as some of the other quarterback selections in this draft, but don't sleep on Mertz moving forward.
